Steam World Music

SteamWorld Dig, the 3DS eShop title — since ported to other platforms including Wii U — propelled Image & Form to prominence among Nintendo gamers and the wider gaming community, so there'll be plenty of attention on the upcoming SteamWorld Heist. Less a sequel and more of a spin-off, it sees the steam-driven robots exploring and surviving in outer space, with the player raiding other ships for resources.

A feature of SteamWorld Dig that some particularly enjoyed was its soundtrack, and it seems Image & Form is keen to ensure that this follow-up delivers an equally memorable end result. The studio has confirmed that Steam Powered Giraffe — a band based out of San Diego — will be producing all of the music and appearing as a live band in the game's bar areas. As the studio's Brjann Sigurgeirsson explains, the band's concept of being steam-driven robots performing music couldn't be a better fit, to the point that the association seems almost too good to be true.

A SteamWorld game about steam-powered robots featuring real-world steam-powered robots. It's perfect!

I met with SPG at E3 in June to seal the deal, and since I love their music I have to admit I was a bit starstruck. But it turned out they loved our games as well. We're very much alike, childish and pretty resourceful. They wear a bit more makeup at times, is all.

Band member, David Michael Bennett (The Spine), has also pitched in on the partnership.

Luckily, make-up aside, our mechanical cog-filled hearts were in synch. When asked if we would like to collaborate with Image and Form on their next SteamWorld game we immediately said yes! We loved SteamWorld Dig, and a steam-powered robot band making music for a steam-powered robot game? Count us in!

It’s a unique and enjoyable experience for the band. There is definitely a ton of passion going into the game, from them, from us, it’s a labor of love and we personally can’t wait to share our contributions to the game with the world.

This could be a fascinating partnership, for sure. Below is a new video for "Prepare for Boarding" from the game, while you can see more of the band's videos on their YouTube channel; we've also included their cover of Rihanna's 'Diamonds', which has over two million views.

Let us know what you think of this partnership, while in the meantime you can learn a bit more about the game in our hands on feature and interview with Image & Form.